In this lesson, the class explores the living and nonliving parts of a forest while on a hike. Students spend individual quiet time observing and drawing parts of a forest. The lesson concludes with opportunities for students to act out and share what they observed.

In this activity, students will play the parts of native plants, invasive plants, and herbivores in a game. They will quickly see the advantages that invasives have over natives. Students will experience the vulnerabilities of native species, such as competition, predation, and dependence on nutrients, water, and space.

In this activity, students will compare immigration statistics with the arrival of invasive species to understand how and why invasive plants came to America.

In this activity, students will map the invasive species present in an area on their school grounds, school forest, or nearby natural area. Older students may standardize and digitize the information for inclusion in a long-term monitoring database.

In this lesson, students explore what an imaginary animal needs to survive, and they decide if it could live on their playground. Then the students look at the needs of real animals that may live in their schoolyard.

In this lesson, students learn about living and nonliving parts of the forest through a series of sensory activities. The lesson concludes with each student using his or her senses of touch, smell, and hearing to investigate a tree while blindfolded.

In this activity, students will use a simple survey to assess the knowledge of classmates and/or neighbors concerning invasive plants. Students will analyze the survey results to determine how best to educate the community about invasive plants.

In this lesson, students examine ashes from paper to describe the changes that fire can cause. They also learn the elements necessary for fire to exist by studying a burning candle. Students then distinguish the difference between good and bad fire situations and learn what they can do to prevent bad fire situations. In conclusion, students create a cartoon that conveys a fire prevention message.

In this activity, students will read quotes concerning invasive species from a variety of sources. They will identify the position of the writer, choose sides in a debate, and defend a position that might not be their own.

In this lesson, students listen to an adaptation of Aesop’s Fable, The Hen That Laid the Golden Egg, and discover what it means for something to be sustainable. They define the word steward and brainstorm ways that citizens can participate as forest stewards. As a group, students read about situations facing our forests and determine which actions would help sustain them. Upon completion, students are sworn in as forest stewards and make a shield or family crest that shows why our forests are important and what they can do to sustain them.

In this lesson, students explore the reasons for urban forest management through an interactive board game. They then consider if those same problems and solutions can be applied to rural forests.

In this lesson, students review the three main parts of a tree. They complete a worksheet to learn the parts of a tree that are used in identification. Students play a game and act out how a tree meets its basic needs. They then label and put in order the life stages of a tree. As a conclusion, students draw their own tree, label it, and write a paragraph about how that tree is identified.

In this lesson, students listen to a story, then either draw a picture or write a new story about the benefits of trees and differing points of views about trees. Students then create a rhyme or song about how the trees make them feel. Finally, students consider how trees in rural forests are beneficial by comparing illustrations representing a tree in an urban forest and a tree in a rural forest.

In this lesson, students combine their knowledge with information from dictionaries to define "urban forest" and “ecosystem.” They relate their school to an ecosystem and then create a web diagram to show the connections that parts of urban forests have. They extend that idea to the connections urban forests have to other ecosystems using the water cycle as an example. To conclude, students write a few paragraphs to describe and compare urban forest ecosystems and rural forest ecosystems.

In this lesson, students learn about the meaning of the word "steward" and discuss choices they would make in given situations. They learn about the people who influence urban forests through an Old Maid-type card game. They also create their own knight's shield that shows why urban forests are important and what they can do to help them.

In this activity, students will research invasive forest plants and design "wanted posters" that illustrate the plants' shady characteristics and crimes.

In this lesson, students match plant species with forest ecosystems and learn that living things are influenced by the nonliving things around them. They create a song or skit to show what they have learned about living and nonliving connections. The students conclude the lesson by creating a mural of different types of forests.

In this lesson, students learn that forests have living and nonliving parts by going on a walkabout and playing a game of Forest Memory. An art project and discussion help students make connections between different parts of the forest. Throughout the lesson, students are immersed in the idea that they, too, are part of the forest.

In this lesson, students learn about stewardship and how their choices affect the future of forests by participating in a mock school board meeting. Students role-play to learn about different perspectives on forest management.